ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR AND MANAGEMENT

UNIT III
GROUP DYNAMICS
Group Dynamics can be understood as a process, wherein the attitude and behaviour of a
member influence the behaviour of another or other members of the group, either by choice or
circumstances. Factors such as individual personality, cultural traditions and social situations,
often affect the group dynamics.

CHARACTERISTICS OF GROUP
Two or More Persons : To form a group, there should be at least two persons because a single
individual cannot interact. There can not be any specific limit on the maximum number of
persons in a group but the size of the group will be determined by rules and regulation of the
organization in this context.There should be meaningful interaction among the members even
in the case of informal groups.

Collective Identity: Members of the group must be aware about their membership of the group.
Each member of thegroup must believe that he is member of, is a participant in, some specific
group. It is the case of aggregation of individual, they are ordinarily not aware of one another or,
if aware, do not interact with each other in a meaningful way.

Interaction: Members of the group interact among themselves. Interaction means that each
member shares hisideas with others through communication and this communication can take
place face, Face to Face in writing, over the telephone, across a computer network, or in any other
manner which allows communication among group members. However, it is not necessary for
all members of the group to interact simultaneously, but each member must interact atleast
occasionally with one or more members of the group

Shared Goal Interest: Members of the group should subscribe to the attainment of some
common objectives. However, It is not necessary that each member subscribes to or agrees with
the objectives of the group. If a group has a variety of objectives or interest, each member of the
group must share atleast one of the group’s concerns. The shared goal interest binds the group
member together.
IMPORTANCE OF GROUP DYNAMICS
The following importance of group dynamics as under: The group can influence the way
it believes the members. The leaders are often informed by other leaders interacting within the
party. Compared to a group with a bad leader, a group with a strong leader makes good.
The group will provide the impact of collective effort, i.e. if the collective is made up of positive
thinking then each time its performance is more than double. Apart from that, group dynamism
can give the individuals work fulfillment. Group may also impart the spirit of the team among
members. Also members' attitudes & ideas depend on group dynamism. For example, with the
help of the facilitator negative thinkers convert to positive thinkers.

TYPES OF GROUP

The Group refers to two or more persons who shares a common interest and come
together to achieve common goals and objectives. The groups can be formal and informal; formal
groups are created by the organization with the intent to accomplish its objective, while the
informal groups get created spontaneously as soon as the individuals interact with each other.

The groups can be classified on the basis of the structure of the organization. These are:

The Formal Groups are formed deliberately and consciously collectively to direct the efforts of
group members, especially the employees towards the accomplishment of organizational
objectives.

The Informal groups are those groups that get created spontaneously as soon as individuals
start interacting with each other.

The Task Force is a type of a group, formed temporary, in which people from different
disciplinary backgrounds come together to perform a specific task or mission. These are
different from the committees in the sense, these are temporary and has broader powers of
action and decision, greater responsibilities for investigation, analysis, planning and research.

The Social Loafing is the tendency of an individual to put less effort into the job when he is a
part of the group, as compared to when he is working alone.

The analytical classification of the groups can be done as follows:

Primary and Secondary Groups: The primary group refers to the small social group whose
members are closely related to each other and share an enduring relationship. Examples of these
groups could be family members, friendship groups and highly influential social groups. Here
the group members have an intimate relationship with each other and is characterized by face
to face association and cooperation.

The Secondary Groups are more formal groups whose members come together to
perform certain tasks. Here the group members are not emotionally associated with each other
and do not get affected by the pain and the pleasure of others. Examples of these groups could
be corporate groups, military, political group, factories, etc. Thus, a secondary group is more
institutionalized in nature.

Membership and Reference Groups: The membership group is the one to which an individual
actually belongs to. Sometimes the membership fee is to be given to become a member of certain
groups. The club membership is the best example of membership groups.

The reference groups are the types of groups with which an individual identify himself
and want to become a member of that group. An individual could be a member of several groups,
but may not participate in all simultaneously and would like to participate in those groups whose
norms are more attractive and gratifying.

Command and Task Groups: A command group is comprised of superiors and subordinates
who carry out orders on the basis of their authority within the group. This type of group is
determined through the hierarchical chart of the organization. An example could be a marketing
manager having the group of sales personnel under his department.

Task Group is a group of individuals who come together to accomplish a certain task or a
job assigned to them. Generally, these groups are created to capitalize the expertise of different
individuals towards the accomplishment of a particular project. Thus, the task groups can be
formed beyond the lines of a hierarchical chart of the organization.

In-groups and Out-groups: The in-group are the types of groups composed of the individuals
who holds a dominant position in the social functioning. These members could be in the majority
and carry prevailing values in the society.
The out-group refers to those individuals who are in the certain instances considered to be less
in numbers and often looked upon as marginal or subordinate in the society.

TUCKMAN'S STAGES OF GROUP DEVELOPMENT

Tuckman's model explains that as the team develops maturity and ability, relationships
establish, and the leader changes leadership style. Beginning with a directing style, moving
through coaching, then participating and finishing with delegation, at which point they are
almost detached. At this point, the team may produce a successor leader and the previous leader
can move on to develop a new team.

This simple overview of the Tuckman 'Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing' model
offers a simple way to understand how groups develop. Tuckman's model is especially helpful
in training people on group work, thus enabling groups to fulfil their full potential.
Stage 1: Forming

• High dependence on the leader for guidance and direction.

• Little agreement on team objectives other than those received from the leader.
• Individual roles and responsibilities are unclear.
• The leader must be prepared to answer lots of questions about the team's purpose,
objectives and external relationships. Processes are often ignored.
• Members test the tolerance of the system and leader.
• The leader directs (similar to Situational Leadership® 'Telling' mode).
Stage 2: Storming
• A lack of agreement when it comes to making group decisions. Team members attempt to
establish themselves and their position in relation to other team members and the leader,
who might receive challenges from team members.
• Clarity of the team's purpose increases but many uncertainties persist.
• Cliques and factions form. This may lead to power struggles. The team needs to focus on
its goals to avoid becoming distracted by relationships and emotional issues.
• Compromises may be required to enable progress.
• The leader coaches (similar to Situational Leadership® 'Selling' mode).
Stage 3: Norming
Agreement and consensus largely forms among the team, who respond well to facilitation by the
leader.
 • Roles and responsibilities are clear and accepted.
• Big decisions are made by group agreement. Smaller decisions may be delegated to
individuals or small teams within the group.
• Commitment and unity are strong. The team may engage in fun and social activities.
• The team discusses and develops its processes and working style.
• There is general respect for the leader and leadership responsibilities are now shared
amongst the team.
• The leader facilitates and enables (similar to the Situational Leadership® 'Participating'
mode).
Stage 4: Performing
• The team's increased strategic awareness. It is now clear why the team is doing what it is
doing.
• The shared vision of the team. It is now independent and does not need interference or
participation from the leader.
• A focus on over-achieving goals and the team makes most of the decisions against criteria
agreed with the leader. The team has a high degree of autonomy.
• Disagreements. However, they are now resolved within the team positively, and necessary
changes to processes and structure are made by the team.
• The team can work towards achieving the goal and attend to relationship, style and
process issues along the way.
• Team members look after each other.
• The team requires delegated tasks and projects from the leader.
• The team does not needing to be instructed or assisted. Team members might ask for
assistance from the leader with personal and interpersonal development.
• The leader delegating and overseeing (similar to the Situational Leadership®
'Delegating' mode).

Stage 5: Adjourning
Bruce Tuckman refined his theory in 1975 and added a fifth stage to the 'Forming, Storming,
Norming, Performing' model: Adjourning. This is also referred to as Deforming and Mourning.

Adjourning is arguably more of an adjunct to the original four-stage model rather than an
extension - it views the group from a perspective beyond the purpose of the first four stages.
The Adjourning phase is certainly very relevant to the people in the group and their well-being,
but not to the main task of managing and developing a team, which is more central to the original
four stages.

Tuckman's fifth stage, Adjourning, is the break-up of the group, once the task is completed
successfully and its purpose fulfilled.

THEORIES GROUP FORMATION

1. Propinquity Theory:
The most basic theory explaining affiliation is propinquity. This interesting word simply
means that individuals affiliate with one another because of spatial or geographical proximity.
In an organisation employees who work in the same area of the plant or office or managers with
offices close to one another would more probably form into groups than would those who are
not physically located together. There is some research evidence to support the propinquity
theory and on the surface, it has a great deal of merit for explaining group formation. The
drawback of this theory is that it is not analytical and does not begin to explain some of the
complexities of group formation. Some more theoretical and practical reasons need to be
explored.

2. Homan’s Theory:
According to George C. Homans, “The more activities persons share, the more numerous
will be there interactions and the stronger will be their shared activities and sentiments, and the
more sentiments people have for one another, the more will be their shared activities and
interactions.”

It is a very comprehensive theory and based on activities, interactions and Homan’s

theory is based on sentiments. These three elements are directly related to each other. The
members’ activities interactions and of a group share activities and interact with one another
not just because of physical proximity but also to accomplish group goals.

The key element is interaction because of which they develop common sentiments for
one another. These sentiments gradually get expressed through the formation of informal
groups. If any disturbance is caused to any of the three-activities, interactions and sentiments, it
is likely to disturb all the others.
Their relationships are shown in the following figure:

3. Balance Theory:
Another very comprehensive theory is a Balance Theory of group formation. This theory
as proposed by Theodore Newcomb states that “Persons are attracted to one another on the
basis of similar attitudes towards commonly relevant objects and goals. Once a relationship is
formed, it strives to maintain a symmetrical balance between the attraction and the common
attitudes. If an imbalance occurs, attempts are made to restore the balance. If the balance cannot
be restored, the relationship dissolves.”

Thus, the balance theory is additive in nature in the sense, that it introduces the factor of
balance to the propinquity and interaction factors. There must be a balance in the relationship
between the group members for the group to be formed and for its survival. The following -figure
shows the balance theory.

Individual (A) will interact and form a relationship/group with individual (B) because of
common attitudes and values (C). Once this relationship is formed, the participants strive to
maintain a symmetrical balance between the attraction and the common attitudes. If an
imbalance occurs, an attempt is made to restore the balance. If the balance cannot be restored,
the relationship dissolves.

4. Exchange Theory:
This theory is based on reward-cost outcomes of interactions. To be attracted towards a
group, a person thinks in terms of what he will get in exchange of interaction with group
members. A minimum positive level (rewards greater than costs) of an outcome must exist in
order for attraction or affiliation to take place. Rewards from interactions gratify needs while
costs incur anxiety, frustrations, embarrassment or fatigue. Propinquity, interaction and
common attitudes all have roles in the exchange theory.

GROUP DECISION MAKING TECHNIQUES

1. Brainstorming
Brainstorming is defined as a creative technique for generating a large number of ideas
or solutions to a problem in a free-flowing and non-judgmental environment without initial
judgment or evaluation. This technique includes a group of people to make valid decisions for a
problem. For instance, a group of five to ten members sit around the table and discuss the
problem to reach a decision. Here, the main focus of all the group members is to generate ideas
about the problem from different points of view or different angles. They have no worries about
implementing those ideas. Under Brainstorming-
The technique is very effective when the problem is not so big or the problem is comparatively
precise or easy.
If there is a big problem, then the dividing and conquering technique is followed. Under
this, the main problem will be divided into two or more small problems. After getting the solution
for all the problems, all solutions will be combined to get the solution to the main problem.
In this technique, while the discussion is going on, there is a possibility of the occurrence of
various ideas. At last, all the ideas are compared and the optimal idea or decision will be taken
to address the problem.
2. Nominal Group Technique (NGT)
The Nominal Group Technique (NGT) is a structured group decision-making technique
used to generate and prioritise ideas or solutions to a specific problem or task. NGT combines
individual idea generation with group discussion and voting to achieve consensus. It was
developed to be a more systematic and structured alternative to traditional brainstorming. The
Nominal Group Technique (NGT) is quite similar to brainstorming, as both of the techniques
focus on individual thinking power or the ability to make decisions on an individual level.
In the Nominal Group Technique (NGT) technique, a group of five to ten members sit together
but here the group members think about the problem individually and they do not share their
thoughts with anyone.
They originate ideas for solving the problem. So here the thinking power of the individual
also increases.
When the above-stated phase is completed, all the group members sit together and communicate
their ideas.
All the ideas are now discussed in the group with pros and cons similar to the brainstorming
technique.
After all these ideas have been discussed, the potential solutions are evaluated based on their
merits and demerits.
Each participating member is needed to vote on each idea and allot it a rank based on the priority
of each alternative solution.
At last, the most optimal ideas will be selected to solve the problem.
3. Electronic Meetings
Electronic Meeting is defined as a virtual meeting held on Google Meet, Zoom, or any other
platform, to discuss the problem and find various potential solutions. This approach is less costly
and there is no need for physical availability. In this way, anyone can take part in the decision-
making process anywhere in the world. This technique is mostly used by remote workers to
discuss things. This is the most interesting and unique approach to decision-making. This came
into use at the time of COVID-19 and after that, this approach or technique was continued in most
organisations or firms.
4. Multi-Voting
Multi-voting is also the best group decision-making technique. Here, all the ideas,
thoughts, and decisions are written in the polls and then the polls will be shared will all the
members to vote according to their interests or choices. This technique is mostly used for yes or
no decisions, where a poll is created with two options of yes or no, and the decision will be taken
based on poll results.
So these are some group decision-making techniques that are mostly or commonly used,
basically selecting the most suitable technique depends on factors, conditions, or situations such
as the decision’s complexity, the number of participants, time constraints, and the nature of the
issue at hand. Effective facilitation and open communication are essential elements for successful
group decision-making, ensuring that the chosen technique aligns with the group’s goals and
objectives.
INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS
Develops and maintains effective relationships with others; relates well to people from
varied backgrounds and in different situations; shows understanding, courtesy, tact, empathy,
concern, and politeness.
Key Behaviors

• Relates to people in an open, friendly, and professional manner.

• Cooperates and works to gain support and commitment from others when performing
tasks.
• Discusses subjects in a constructive manner, with all levels of staff.
• Fosters cooperation, collaboration, and communication to facilitate consensus and
accomplish tasks.
• Demonstrates diplomacy by approaching others about sensitive issues in non-
threatening ways.
• Fosters an environment conducive to open, transparent communications among all
levels.
• Notices and accurately interprets what others are feeling, based on their word choices,
voice tones, facial expressions, and other nonverbal behavior.
• Presents oneself in a professional manner to maintain image and credibility.

COMMUNICATION
The Communication is a two-way process wherein the message in the form of ideas,
thoughts, feelings, opinions is transmitted between two or more persons with the intent of
creating a shared understanding.

Simply, an act of conveying intended information and understanding from one person to
another is called as communication. The term communication is derived from the Latin
word “Communis” which means to share. Effective communication is when the message
conveyed by the sender is understood by the receiver in exactly the same way as it was intended.

Communication Process

The communication is a dynamic process that begins with the conceptualizing of ideas by
the sender who then transmits the message through a channel to the receiver, who in turn gives
the feedback in the form of some message or signal within the given time frame. Thus, there are
Seven major elements of communication process:
1. Sender: The sender or the communicator is the person who initiates the conversation
and has conceptualized the idea that he intends to convey it to others.

2. Encoding: The sender begins with the encoding process wherein he uses certain words
or non-verbal methods such as symbols, signs, body gestures, etc. to translate the
information into a message. The sender’s knowledge, skills, perception, background,
competencies, etc. has a great impact on the success of the message.

3. Message: Once the encoding is finished, the sender gets the message that he intends to
convey. The message can be written, oral, symbolic or non-verbal such as body gestures,
silence, sighs, sounds, etc. or any other signal that triggers the response of a receiver.

4. Communication Channel: The Sender chooses the medium through which he wants to
convey his message to the recipient. It must be selected carefully in order to make the
message effective and correctly interpreted by the recipient. The choice of medium
depends on the interpersonal relationships between the sender and the receiver and also
on the urgency of the message being sent. Oral, virtual, written, sound, gesture, etc. are
some of the commonly used communication mediums.
 5. Receiver: The receiver is the person for whom the message is intended or targeted. He
tries to comprehend it in the best possible manner such that the communication objective
is attained. The degree to which the receiver decodes the message depends on his
knowledge of the subject matter, experience, trust and relationship with the sender.

6. Decoding: Here, the receiver interprets the sender’s message and tries to understand it
in the best possible manner. An effective communication occurs only if the receiver
understands the message in exactly the same way as it was intended by the sender.

7. Feedback: The Feedback is the final step of the process that ensures the receiver has
received the message and interpreted it correctly as it was intended by the sender. It
increases the effectiveness of the communication as it permits the sender to know the
efficacy of his message. The response of the receiver can be verbal or non-verbal.

CONFLICT MANAGEMENT
The Channel Conflict arises when the channel partners such as manufacturer,
wholesaler, distributor, retailer, etc. compete against each other for the common sale with the
same brand.
Conflict Management

The Channel Conflict arises when the channel partners such as manufacturer, wholesaler,
distributor, retailer, etc. compete against each other for the common sale with the same brand.

In other words, there is a conflict among the channel partners when one prevents the other from
achieving its objective. It results in a huge loss for all the partners in the channel.

1. Vertical Channel Conflict: This type of conflict arises between the different levels in the
same channel.
 E.g.The conflict between the manufacturer and the wholesaler regarding price, quantity,
marketing activities, etc.

2. Horizontal Channel Conflict: This type of conflict arises between the same level in the
same channel.
E.g. The conflict between two retailers of the same manufacturer faces disparity in
terms of sales target, area coverage, promotional schemes, etc.

3. Multichannel Conflict: This type of conflict arises between the different market
channels participating in the common sale for the same brand.
E.g. If a manufacturer uses two market channels, first is the official website through
which the products and services are sold. The second channel is the traditional channel
i.e. through wholesaler and retailer. If the product is available at a much lower price on a
website than is available with the retailer, the multichannel conflict arises.

Causes of Channel conflict

Goal incompatibility: Different partners in the channel of distribution have different goals that
may or may not coincide with each other and thus result in conflict.
E.g. The manufacturer wants to achieve the larger market share by adopting the market
penetration strategy i.e. offering a product at low price and making the profits in the long run,
whereas the dealer wants to sell the product at a high cost i.e. market skimming strategy and
earn huge profits in the short run.
Ambiguous Roles: The channel partners may not have a clear picture of their role i.e. what they
are supposed to do, which market to cater, what pricing strategy is to be adopted, etc.
E.g. The manufacturer may sell its products through its direct sales force in the same area where
the authorized dealer is supposed to sell; this may result in the conflict.
Different Perceptions: The channel partners may have different perceptions about the market
conditions that hampers the business as a whole thereby leading to the conflict.
E.g. The manufacturer is optimistic about the change in the price of the product whereas the
dealer feels the negative impact of price change on the customers.
Manufacturer dominating the Intermediaries: The intermediaries such as the wholesaler,
distributor, retailer, etc. carry the process of distribution of goods and services for the
manufacturer. And if the manufacturer makes any change in the price, product, marketing
activity the same has to be implemented with an immediate effect thereby reflecting the huge
dependence of intermediaries on the manufacturer.
E.g. If the manufacturer changes the promotional scheme of a product with the intention to cut
the cost, the retailer may find it difficult to sell the product without any promotional scheme and
hence the conflict arises.
Lack of Communication: This is one of the major reasons that lead to the conflict among the
channel partners. If any partner is not communicated about any changes on time will hamper
the distribution process and will result in disparity.
E.g. If retailer urgently requires the stock and the wholesaler didn’t inform him about the
availability of time may lead to the conflict between the two.
Dispute Resolution Strategies
Dispute Resolution refers to a technique of settling the conflicts or claims between two
parties, i.e. employer and employees. The technique aims at achieving fairness for both the
groups and arriving at an agreement between by consensus, often initiated by a third party.
These disputes are caused by wage demands, unfair labour practices, political interferences,
union rivalry, etc.

There are seven methods of resolving industrial disputes which can be adopted as per
the different situational requirements.

Methods of Dispute Resolution

 1. Collective Bargaining: A process in which the representatives of employees or say labour
unions and employers meet and discuss various matters relating to wage and benefits to
arrive at a mutual agreement.

2. Code of Discipline: In this method, the duties and responsibilities of both parties are
defined. When these norms are strictly followed, the probability of disputes can be
reduced. The Ministry of Labour of India has released a code of conduct for industries.

3. Grievance Procedure: Grievance takes place when there is a violation of the provision of
law or breach of terms and conditions of employment by the management. The redressal
can be sought by the aggrieved employee through the defined grievance procedure.

4. Arbitration: A process wherein, an independent party intervenes and studies the

bargaining situation, hears both the parties and collects necessary data. After that, the
recommendations are made by the arbitrator which are binding on the warring groups.

5. Conciliation: Under this process, the representatives of both management and labour
union are brought together before the conciliator to persuade them to reach a consensus.
The conciliator may be an individual or a group of people. The conciliator cannot enforce
his decision on the parties concerned.

6. Adjudication: When the dispute is not settled through conciliation, recourse to

adjudication is taken, only on the recommendation of the conciliation officer. The process
is an obligatory resolution of the industrial dispute by labour court or tribunal, wherein
the verdict of the labour court is binding on the groups.

7. Consultative Machinery: To settle industrial conflicts, bipartite or tripartite bodies are

set by the government at the plant, industry, state and national levels, with a view to
bringing parties together for mutual discussion and settlement of disputes.

The consequences of industrial disputes have an adverse effect on all stakeholders like
employees, society, management, government, investors and so on. The company’s management
has to bear the loss of production, revenue and profit as well. Even employees have to face
hardships due to lockouts and strikes, which may result in loss of wages and even jobs. So, the
industrial disputes should be resolved as soon as possible.
AUTHORITY AND ORGANIZATIONAL CONTROL MECHANISMS
A means to control the behavior of or within a process or system. There are many types of control
mechanisms. Human decision making is a control mechanism made by an individual to start or
delay a process in an attempt to keep or bring a process within a desired state. Control
mechanisms can be physical such as limiting the number of trailers controls the number of
deliveries that can be made at a given time. Software provides control by signaling whether a
process should be started or delayed in order to achieve or maintain a desired state.

DISTINCTION BETWEEN ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND CLIMATE

CREATING AND SUSTAINING CULTURE

Focus on the Positive. The power of positivity can be especially helpful to those who need a
little boost in employee morale. Negative talk (gossip, complaining and criticizing) can bring
down even the best organization. It’s toxic to your culture, and your bottom line, so don’t let
those Negative Nellies drag you down.

Ensure Shared Values. Skills and competencies are important, but behaviors are often rooted
in one’s personal values. Have your team explore their values and share them with their
colleagues. It is eye opening for staff to discover how their values impact them as a person, and
what is important to their teammates. Be sure to hire employees who model behaviors that fit
your values.

Give and Receive Feedback. When giving feedback, be specific, focus on the observed behavior,
and describe the impact it had. It’s important to address conflict and how to have comfortable
conversations. Most people love giving positive feedback but dread the tough stuff. If you’re used
to structuring your feedback and developing a strong level of trust amongst your team, the tough
stuff won’t feel so difficult anymore.

Care About Your Team Members. If you want your people to care about your residents, not
just checkoff tasks on a list, then you must care about your people! And show them that you do.

Set Expectations. All employees should know what is expected of them and in a field where we
are struggling to retain employees past the honeymoon phase, setting expectations right from
the start is critically important. Explain the importance of the organizational culture and the
mindset that comes with being person-centered and focused on continuous performance
improvement.

Evaluate Processes and Procedures. If you’re committing to continuously improving, and not
falling behind the times, you’ll need to have systems in place to constantly evaluate and look for
opportunities. You’ll also want to make sure that your current processes or procedures aren’t
causing a bottleneck or hindering employees from doing the right thing.

Create Opportunities for Collaboration. We hear time and time again that teams are working
in silos and that they aren’t working together to meet the resident’s needs. It’s important to
create opportunities for team members to collaborate with each other.

Be Consistent. Starting and stopping new things all the time will never lead to movement and it
can cause employees to distrust management. Flavor of the month clubs aren’t effective, and no
one likes a boss who says one thing and does another. It is better to pick one thing and follow
through on it then to try all ten, only to get overwhelmed and give up.